Sit back, relax and enjoy some of the finer things in life

Travel

In the United States we call them tapas. In northern Spain they’re better-known as pinchos. Spaniards love the little bites (pronounced PEEN-chos) so much that they set aside a week each spring — actually 10 days this year, April 8-17 — to sample them. Pinchos are taking center stage at some 90 restaurants and bars in … Continue Reading →

If you’re anything like me, it doesn’t take long each winter for cabin fever to strike. Luckily, there’s still plenty of time to plan a getaway to northern Michigan where they have special ways of celebrating that take the dreariness out and put some real fun in to snow season. And most of those ways … Continue Reading →

The only thing better than telling friends you’re going to ‘the south of France’ on a Viking River cruise is actually being on that cruise. Sitting on the deck of the Viking Heimdal, sipping champagne as the ship slipped past the colorful churches, museums and chateaux of Lyon, ranks as one of my 2015 travel … Continue Reading →

Holiday shopping gets old after a while and you can only binge-watch so many movies. If you find yourself with some free time — and a bit of wanderlust — during Christmas break, gift yourself with a road-trip or two to a pair of museums with special exhibits ending soon. Each is within a three-hour drive … Continue Reading →

Tributes to Ol’ Blue Eyes can be found around nearly every corner in Greater Palm Springs. Whether it’s the Frank Sinatra “Star Suite” at Renaissance Indian Wells Resort & Spa or his original Twin Palms Estate in the Movie Colony neighborhood, the legendary crooner is never far from mind. And, now, as Dec. 12 — the 100th … Continue Reading →

From the Alabama Gulf Coast to Zihuatanejo, Mexico, the Society of American Travel Writers’ annual auction offers dozens of options to get out of town — or out of your comfort zone — in the coming year. Through Nov. 8 at 11:45 p.m., you can bid on dozens of travel-related items, including domestic getaways in the … Continue Reading →

Sneaking a cigarette, tasting that first beer or borrowing Mom and Dad’s car for a joy-ride are about as daring as it gets when it comes to rites of passage for American teens. In Pamplona, boys of all ages — and a few girls, too — run with the bulls. From waiters and cab drivers … Continue Reading →

Cherries have been my favorite fruit for as long as I can remember. That’s why I get excited each July when the National Cherry Festival takes over Traverse City. Last year, for the second time, I was lucky enough to experience the annual cherry mania first-hand. And it was just as much fun as … Continue Reading →

Spring is in full, beautiful bloom in the Finger Lakes region of New York, site of this month’s meeting of the Midwest Travel Writers Association. In addition to lots of photos, oodles of story ideas and great memories, I brought home three Mark Twain awards, including a first place, in MTWA’s annual travel writing competition. … Continue Reading →